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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Currently, over 860 women die as a result of
3pregnancy and childbirth-related causes in the United States,
4and the latest data from 2020 shows that over 80% of the
5pregnancy-related deaths in the United States are preventable;
6and
 
7    WHEREAS, Illinois had more than 130,000 births in 2020
8with 75 pregnancy-associated deaths and 943 infant deaths; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Eighty-three percent of the pregnancy-related
10deaths were deemed preventable in Illinois by review
11committees; and
 
12    WHEREAS, African American women in the United States
13experience maternal-related deaths at three times the rate of
14non-Hispanic white women, according to the Mothers and
15Offspring Mortality and Morbidity Awareness Act, re-introduced
16by U.S. Representative Robin Kelly of Illinois in February
172021; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Non-Hispanic Black women are three times more
19likely to die of a pregnancy-related condition than
20non-Hispanic white women in Illinois, according to the 2021
21Illinois Department of Public Health Illinois Maternal

 

 

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1Morbidity and Mortality Report; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Among the top common causes of pregnancy-related
3deaths in Illinois are mental health conditions, pre-existing
4chronic conditions, hemorrhage, and hypertensive disorder; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Research has shown that, relative to white
6patients, Black patients are less likely to be given pain
7medications, and, when pain medication is given, they receive
8lower quantities; and
 
9    WHEREAS, A 2015 study from JAMA Pediatrics found that
10Black children with appendicitis were less likely to receive
11pain medication than their white counterparts; and
 
12    WHEREAS, A study examining disparities in the triaging of,
13or assigning a degree of urgency to, pediatric emergency
14department patients concluded that Black, Hispanic, and Native
15American patients received lower acuity triage scores than
16whites when presenting subjective complaints, such as
17breathing difficulty or abdominal pain; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Researchers have also documented an association
19between race and increased mortality from stroke, and others
20have found that minority patients are less likely to receive
21thrombolytics than white patients; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, A study in the Proceedings of the National
2Academy of Sciences contributes bias in pain assessment and
3management of patients partially to the fact that
4approximately half of medical students and residents believed
5inaccurate biological differences between Black and white
6people, including that Black people have less sensitive nerve
7endings or that a Black person's blood coagulates more
8quickly, as well as other unconscious biases; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Biases in patient assessment and treatment affect
10the level of care for pregnant women, particularly women of
11color; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Studies have also shown that women are generally
13less likely to be diagnosed with diseases, such as heart
14disease, and are less likely to receive aggressive treatment
15for pain management and certain diseases than men; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Due to the vast majority of Illinois births
17occurring in hospitals, hospitals play an important role in
18addressing maternal mortality; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The Illinois Department of Public Health
20currently works with the Maternal Mortality Review Committee
21and the Maternal Mortality Review Committee for Violent Deaths

 

 

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1to review cases of maternal death and to develop statewide
2recommendations to prevent future maternal deaths; therefore,
3be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
5HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6Illinois hospitals should be required to report instances of
7preterm birth, infant mortality, and maternal mortality within
8reporting under the Hospital Report Card Act, including racial
9and ethnic information about the mother and the disparity of
10these occurrences across racial and ethnic groups; and be it
11further
 
12    RESOLVED, That the Illinois Department of Public Health is
13urged to work with the review committees to implement policy
14and corrective actions to address causes of preventable
15maternal death.